Songfacts®:

• Kenny Chesney told CMT about his collaboration with George Strait: "That's my favorite song on the record, if only for the reason that George is on it. It will sit in line with a long line of feel-good records that I've had, the kind of songs I like to do for my show. And having George be a part of this was really special for me. I wish I could've been in the studio when he did it, but I was actually filming the video for "Don't Blink" and couldn't be in two places at once. That was the only time that he could do it because he was on his way to get on his boat and go fishing. So I couldn't be there when he did it."
• The song was written by Troy Jones, who told The Boot about the inspiration for this cut. Said Jones: "I worked in a paper mill for 20 years, and I worked shift work the whole time. When I signed a publishing deal with Carnival Music, I wanted to write a song about something I knew inside and out. I knew something about shift work! I was a little worried about if somebody would even cut the song when you're talking about 'a big ole pile of shift work.' Kenny was familiar with some of my songs, and he liked 'Shiftwork' for a little while before he cut it. My publisher never calls me on Saturdays, so when I answered the phone he told me that George Strait wanted to sing on the song, as well. My wife jumped about three feet in the air! We were both pretty excited. I am so proud of the job they did on it. The thing for me as a songwriter and someone who worked in the factory for so long is that people who actually work in factories tell me how much they love the song. I worked shift work for 20 years... now I know why!"